Night Probe! (edition 1984)

In May 1914 two couriers disappear in twin disasters taking the only two copies of the North American Treaty with them. The governments of the United States and Great Britain order a cover up so it is as if the treaty never existed. In February 1989 Heidi Milligan, a stunningly beautiful (of course) naval commander discovers an obscure reference to the long-lost document which is now worth billions of dollars. The race is on to rescue one copy of the treaty from the bottom of the ocean.

I have a soft spot for Dirk Pitt even though these books can get really over the top sometimes. This book is my favorite of the series because part of it is set in the village where I was living at the time. The physical description of the area was so detailed and so correct that I was convinced that a few of the other background details were based on fact. When I tried to hunt down the story at the local public library the story looked so plausible that the local history librarian was puzzled that she hadn't come across it before. We wrote to Clive Cussler and he replied "Don't believe everything you read" saying that he had made up every single bit of historical background in the book. ( )

In May 1914 two couriers disappear in twin disasters taking the only two copies of the North American Treaty with them. The governments of the United States and Great Britain order a cover up so it is as if the treaty never existed. In February 1989 Heidi Milligan, a stunningly beautiful (of course) naval commander discovers an obscure reference to the long-lost document which is now worth billions of dollars. The race is on to rescue one copy of the treaty from the bottom of the ocean.

I have a soft spot for Dirk Pitt even though these books can get really over the top sometimes. This book is my favorite of the series because part of it is set in the village where I was living at the time. The physical description of the area was so detailed and so correct that I was convinced that a few of the other background details were based on fact. When I tried to hunt down the story at the local public library the story looked so plausible that the local history librarian was puzzled that she hadn't come across it before. We wrote to Clive Cussler and he replied "Don't believe everything you read" saying that he had made up every single bit of historical background in the book. ( )

Dirk Pitt once more manages to find himself in the midst of aquatic adventure. As usual, this Cussler yarn is a standalone book, so can be read at any point. The tale itself weaves political upheaval around the search for two sunken treasures. Unfortunately, the plot requires a rather large leap of faith and this is compounded by stereotypical characters. That said, if you are prepared to suspend your disbelief, Night Probe has all the boxes checked that make an adventure book interesting. Although you'll want to see this one through once you've started it, there are plenty of better Cussler books you could read instead, most of which are smarter and more intriguing. ( )

See Pacific Vortex!. ( )

Worth reading once… Can be made into a movie… ( )